#we have adopted stiles as “our boy” to quote

[emo-nova]

hi, hello, I'm back, now on season 2, episode 5, very beginning. Here's my little check in, Isaac, a little shit, one of my new faves.

Sitting right next door to Derek and Stiles, on faves list. Though I am annoyed in the direction that the writers are making Derek and Stiles go in.

Let's start on my opinion on Stiles, if I was the one writing this I would have Stiles more vocal about Derek's wolf pack and his gathering of it being possibly being okay, mainly because I think by creating friction between Stiles and Scott makes them more believable as friends. There are disagreements and this disagreement could show the difference between Scott and Stiles. Scott, projecting his trauma of no choice within turning into a werewolf, is against the idea of more werewolves. Stiles, having that choice of being or not being a werewolf but close to being pressured into it, thinks higher of Derek giving a choice to Isaac, Erica and Boyd. Another thing, if i were a writer of this show, I would have Derek and his pack notice Stiles attempting to not help but not dissuade them from Derek's turning just telling it from an outsider's perspective if possible and later having this be a build off for the pool scene.

Next, Derek, oh Derek, my poor boy. First, what the fuck was the subtle sexual thing between him and Erica, its a no from me, sorry. Maybe they were aiming for uncomfortable, or to try and make Erica's confidence in her looks be elevated after the bite with possible sexual freedom? I don't know, I'm just guessing though. For Erica's perspective, you can try and persuade me that it works. But for Derek's? No, it'll be very difficult, but I will still want to hear it out. Another thing for Derek is that the way he trains his pack, I don't see as a very Derek approach, he learns and adapts and the way he is training them is worse than what he did with Scott. I honestly think he wouldn't do that violent training more attuned to control and how to keep hidden especially with hunters lurking at every corner.

I am enjoying character development between Stiles and Derek, they have one of the most interesting dynamics to me, I can see why they are shipped and I am close to shipping them for the pure need of a competent couple working together on something. Before anyone yells at me, Derek isn't that competent, I say he is as he figures out clues and has theories and is pretty solid on understanding what's happening *MOST* of the time. He does have his pitfalls in knowledge but it's good to have to help with creating stakes.

Also, mini rant about Scott McCall. His vet/Mentor told him to look at the problem he has with a 'different perspective' and proceeds to shut off Stiles' 'different perspective' on Derek's pack and possibly working with them or at least being at peace with them. Scott refuses admantely! Then, end of episode 4, Scott finally goes "We have to work together Derek!" (hypocritical, I can deal with that) "Work with the hunters!" MAIN CHARACTER OF THIS SERIES? DID YOU FORGET THE OMEGA GERARD SLICED IN HALF? YOU THINK HE WILL WORK WITH YOU? YOU THINK ANY OF THE ARGENTS EXPECT FOR ALISON ARE GOING TO PLAY NICE???????

That, so far, all is what I'm going to say. Stay tuned for my chaotic rambling ig?

[daughterofluthien]

“decisions were respected” Sorry but didn’t Scott violently throw Isaac against a wall more than once just because Isaac liked his ex girlfriend in canon? That’s the literal opposite of healthy...

Hey, anon!

This is in reference to this post about Scallison for the shipping meme, where I said that one of my favorite things about Scallison is that the show lets them have a healthy breakup, and even date other people while still remaining friends. The scenes you are referring to are a pair of scenes in 3x13 Anchors.

So lets’s take a look.

(under a cut bc it turns out that when you try to be comprehensive, things get v long v quickly 😅)

The Scenes

I’m actually gonna copy/paste the dialogue of both scenes (along with minimal action/inflection notation for context) so that we can really make sure we know what we’re talking about here, so bear with me:

The first of these scenes occurs as Scott and Isaac are getting ready to head to school in the morning. After some initial ‘hey, what’re you doing, are you heading to school’ dialogue—during which both boys seem a bit awkward—we get the following:

ISAAC: [anxiously] Can I ask you a question? SCOTT: Okay... ISAAC: Are you angry with me? SCOTT: No! ISAAC: Are you sure? SCOTT: ...No. ISAAC: [awkwardly] What's that mean? SCOTT: I guess I'm not really sure how I'm feeling... ISAAC: [nodding] Okay. ...Do you hate me? SCOTT: [sighing] No, of course not. ISAAC: Do you want to hit me? SCOTT: [taken aback] No. ISAAC: I think you should hit me. SCOTT: I don't want to hit you. ISAAC: Are you sure? SCOTT: Why would I want to hit you? You didn't do anything, did you? ISAAC: [stammering] No. I mean, um... What do you mean? SCOTT: I mean, like, you didn't kiss her or anything, right? ISAAC: No! Absolutely not. No. SCOTT: ...Did you want to? ISAAC: Oh, yeah. Totally. [scene cuts to hallway outside the room. Isaac flies through the doorway and hits the wall] MELISSA: Hey! You two teenage boys? Don't test my entirely un-supernatural level of patience! ISAAC: ...Feel better?

The scene then ends, and we cut to subsequent scenes of Stiles and then Allison also getting ready for school.

The second scene is much shorter and happens later in the episode, after Isaac saves Lydia from an arrow that Allison fired while hallucinating. He and Scott are in Scott’s room again, and he’s telling him about the incident:

SCOTT: Right at her head? ISAAC: Almost right through it. And she keeps saying the same thing-- that she keeps seeing her aunt. Whatever's happening to you guys is getting worse. If I hadn't been there, then Lydia would be dead. SCOTT: ...What were you doing there? ISAAC: Uh... [scene cuts to hallway outside the room. Isaac flies through the doorway and hits the wall] MELISSA: [groaning] Oh, you guys, come on! This house does not have a supernatural ability to heal! So, stop it!

But of course just the text of the scene isn’t enough to accurately convey everything in even a tiny portion of a larger narrative, because nothing happens in a vacuum. With that in mind, let’s look at...

The Context 

The first of these scenes occurs immediately after the opening credits, and is the first time we see either Scott or Isaac this season. (Assuming you consider 3B a separate season, of course, which is a whole ‘nother can of worms. This tv show we all choose to enjoy sure is Something.)

Often, the opening of a season is used to reintroduce the audience to the main characters—letting us know where their characters arcs are starting, and what they’ll be struggling with this season. Teen Wolf did this previously (and did it well, imo) in 3x01 Tattoo. Act 2 of that episode begins with a series of four scenes showing our main characters getting ready for school in the morning, highlighting where everyone currently is, and setting up where their arcs are going to go.

Scene order taken by itself would seem to indicate that they were trying to do something similar in this episode. It starts off with the hook of Stiles’ extended nightmare sequence. He can’t tell dreams apart from reality anymore, and wakes up screaming. Cut to black, cue opening credit sequence.

Immediately after the first ad break, we get a sequence of three scenes. The first is the longer of the two Scott and Isaac scenes (which, as previously mentioned, occurs as they’re getting ready to head out to school). The second is of Stiles. He’s packing for school, and the audience learns that he’s been struggling to read when he’s awake as well. Finally, we see Allison leaving her and her dad’s apartment. She seems like she’s doing fine, if a little over-focused. But then she gets into the elevator, and has an extended hallucination/flashback of Kate.

We learn soon after this that all three of them (Scott, Stiles, and Allison) are suffering from the aftereffects of their sacrifice in the previous season. According to the explanations we get both from Kira and, later, from Deaton, they’re slipping into bardo, or the space between life and death, and there’s a door open in their minds. 

Okay, problem established.

It stands to reason, then, that all three of those opening scenes are supposed to serve to set up this problem. We’re shown, in three successive scenes, that all three of our sacrificees are, as the kids say, Not Doing So Hot.

(yes I know the kids don’t say that, let me be an increasingly out-of-touch millennial in peace)

This is all well and good, and honestly makes sense! Under this paradigm, the Scott and Isaac scene should be highlighting that Scott is Losing Control. Bardo is affecting him, and it’s causing him to be more aggressive. Giving in to violence in a way that he generally holds himself back from. Heck, the scene even starts with Scott flexing his fingers, and we (and Scott) see the shadow of a clawed hand against the door.

In the context of the narrative, it makes sense.

Except.

eXCEPT—

The Framing

The thing about the medium of television is that, when we’re talking about a scene, we can’t just look at the narrative structure. We also have to look at the scene itself: how it’s shot and directed, how it’s edited, even what music is paired with the scenes.

In the Stiles and Allison sequences, the scenes are very clearly shot for tension and horror. Long lingering shots on the things that Just Aren’t Right. Music that heightens the tension. Stiles gets some nice lil scare chords over the shot of the book that he can’t read, and there’s a very quiet droning in the background of the Allison nightmare sequence that slowly grows into some classic horror soundtrack music.

Okay. So far that tracks with the narrative thesis.

Now let’s take look at the Scott and Isaac scene.

We start out with some of those lingering shots I was talking about, as Scott is halted in his tracks when he notices the shadow of the clawed hand. We see his own hand is human and unshifted. There’s quiet, percussion heavy music over this portion of the scene that increases in tension at this point. Shaken, Scott closes his hand into a fist, and when he opens it, both the shadow and his own hand are smooth and human. The tense music fades out to silence, and he breathes a sigh of relief.

Scott opens the door to reveal Isaac, which startles him. There’s a short musical sting to underline this moment, and then the background music cuts out completely, leaving us (and them) in the awkwardness of this moment. 

And OH BOY. IS IT AWKWARD. 😬

You can kinda see the Awkwardness Inherent in the System in the dialogue that I pasted up at the top—it’s a lot of back-and-forth, short statements, trailing off... And both Posey and Sharman are playing up the awkwardness as well. Neither boy looks like they really want to be there, and that includes Isaac, who initiated this entire conversation.

But here’s the thing.

The thing that really frustrates me about this scene.

It’s not the sort of awkwardness that exists to increase the tension. The sort that builds and builds until it reaches a fever pitch and you know something just has to give. You know, the sort of tension that you would want to build if you were showing how the protagonist of your show is no longer fully in control, and is on a knife’s edge of lashing out at his friend and beta.

Instead, it’s played for comedy.

And once again, a lot of this is down to the music.

Before the dialogue that I quoted at the top even begins, the music starts back up, and this time the tense percussion has been replaced by light, pizzicato strings. (That may not be the exact right term, fyi, I only really know enough about music theory to be dangerous.) But you know, the playful, plucked strings that often accompanies comedic or otherwise not-serious scenes.

Background music tells the viewer how they’re supposed to feel about the events in a particular scene, and the music here is saying that we’re not supposed to find this whole confrontation that dramatic. In fact, we’re supposed to find it funny.

But it’s not just the music that that frames this scene as comedic. It’s also the fact that we don’t actually see Scott shoving Isaac. Instead, the scene cuts to the hallway, and all we see is Isaac flying through the doorway.

Now, obviously I don’t have a direct line to the director and editors’ minds here. But I would bet money that those particular shots were chosen 1). because it’s so much easier to do a wire pull stunt when you don’t have to show what it’s in reaction to, and 2). because it’s kinda difficult to show your main character directly doing a violence and make it funny.

But show someone yeeted into frame, and that’s funny. Right?

(Spoiler alert: not in this context, it isn’t)

Now, I know I’ve been focusing on the first scene a lot—partially because it’s longer and partially because it’s really the only reason that the second scene exists—but I do want to take a look at the second scene really quickly as well. It’s much shorter and generally adopts a more serious tone than the first one, mostly due to fact that we’re smack dab in the middle of the action at this point. The weird visions that the sacrificees have been having all episode have started endangering lives, and they can’t just wait for it to resolve on its own.

But then the focused, intent exposition is broken by Scott’s question of “why were you there.” Then smash cut to a near identical shot of the hallway,and Isaac yeeting into frame.

The thing is, this scene is entirely dependent on the previous one. It only “works”—and I use this term loosely—as a call back to the scene at the beginning of the ep. Heck, both even have the stinger of a frustrated Melissa at the end of both scenes, frustrated at all the boys-will-be-boys roughhousing going on in her house.

Much like the first scene, this one is also set up and framed for Comedy.

Which is um. A Choice. 

But What Does It All Mean

What frustrates me about these scenes, at the end of the day, is that the narrative intention and the directing/editing seem to be fundamentally at odds.

On the one hand, it makes narrative sense to say that the purpose of the scenes is to show that Scott is losing control. That he’s being affected by bardo and the open door in his mind, and it’s putting the people close to him in danger. But then on the other, the way the scenes are actually used are as comic relief. As a way to release tension between very tense, dramatic scenes. 

I don’t think it works, as I don’t personally find it funny at all. But that really does seem to be the intention.

Once again, absolutely wILD choices were made on the part of tptb, and I really wish anyone had thought for two seconds about the implications of all of this, but nO

Ahem.

So now (literally 2K words later I’m so sorry 😅) what does this tell us about the characters? Certainly no one here is arguing that shoving someone is a good or defensible choice, whether it’s due to forces outside the character’s control or not. But even taking the influence of bardo in mind, is it even in character for Scott in the first place?

Because canon can also be written inconsistently/out of character, especially when we’re talking about a long-running show like tw.

One’s an Incident, Two is Coincidence...

Well, we all know the end of that saying.

So let’s end by looking at a few patterns.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this, once again, eXCEEDINGLY long post, this is reference to a post I made about scallison. I said the following in that post:

And I also really like that they [Scott and Allison] didn’t get back together. That they were allowed to be friends. That even though sometimes it hurt to watch someone you love loved love become romantically close to another person, decisions were respected, and no friendships were broken over it.

The first pattern we need to look at, then, is this:

What’s Scott’s pattern of behavior toward Allison and Isaac’s relationship?

And does Scott’s behavior toward Isaac in these two scenes match the pattern, or is it an outlier?

3x11 Alpha Pact: Sacrifice Prep The revelation that Allison and Isaac have grown close enough for him to act as emotional tether for her is very visibly a blow to Scott. He looks like the rug has been pulled out from under him, but he doesn’t look angry or upset, just.... sad. In fact, it looks like he’s swallowing back tears. But he nods towards the two of them and just says, “It’s okay.”

3x12 Lunar Ellipse: “I look for my friends” This is the epilogue of the season. Scott walks into the hallway at all of his friends in turn. Satisfied. Happy. First at Lydia and Aiden, then at Danny and Ethan. Then he turns and watches as Isaac and Allison walk down the stairs, and they’re laughing, and so obviously happy, and Scott’s small smile grows. He isn’t jealous here—he’s happy for them. 

3x14 Illuminated: Mutual Recognition Scott and Allison are both at Danny’s halloween party, but they’re not here together. He sees her from across a crowded room, just like he did at the winter formal, so many months ago. But so much has happened, and they’re different people now. Allison’s with Isaac, and he’s starting to having feelings for Kira, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt, and that he doesn’t miss the relationship he and Allison had. For a moment, his fingers slip away from Kira’s, and he and Allison share a sad smile. 

Believe it or not, these are actually the only other examples I could find of Scott reacting to Isaac and Allison’s relationship. And uniformly across them, he’s sad, yes—after all, he loved her, and that relationship is very definitively over now. But he never seems jealous, and he isn’t angry.

So, if the Scott and Isaac scenes in Anchors don’t fit the pattern of Scott’s behavior towards the new couple, what pattern do they fit?

“Hit me.”

The teen wolf writers have a... really upsetting habit, honestly, of “resolving” interpersonal conflict between two characters by having the “wronged” party hit the other. Afterwards, the tension is almost completely broken between them, as if letting the person act aggressively in a way consensual to both parties has somehow solved the problem.

2x11 Battlefield: Derek and Peter After Peter comes back from the dead, he confronts the now pack-less Derek and offers to help him. Derek, likely remembering that Peter killed Laura and was responsible for most of the events of S1, attacks him instead. After taking a beating, Peter says the following:

PETER: Okay, go ahead! Come on, do it! Hit me. Hit me. I can see that it's cathartic for you! You're letting go of all the anger, self-loathing, and hatred that comes with total and complete failure. I may be the one taking the beating, Derek, but you've already been beaten. So, go ahead. Hit me if that will make you feel better. After all, I did say that I wanted to help.

3x13 Anchors: Scott and Isaac We’ve already discussed this scene in uh. Detail. So I don’t think we need to go into the specifics again. But just a reminder that this dialogue exists:

ISAAC: Do you want to hit me? SCOTT: No. ISAAC: I think you should hit me.

5x15 Amplification: Scott and Liam During the previous supermoon, Liam—swayed by grief, the full moon, and Theo’s manipulations—tried to kill Scott and take his power. They’ve since rediscovered an equilibrium in their relationship, and Liam’s back in Scott’s pack, but they’re both still dealing with the implications of that event. In this episode, they’re attempting to break Lydia out of Eichen, but they’re not as strong as they should be, due to the mountain ash laced through the building, and are having difficulty breaking down a door. Then, the following exchange occurs:

LIAM: Hit me. SCOTT: What? LIAM: Hit me! I'll get angry, then I'll get stronger. STILES: Hit him. Hit him! LIAM: I tried to take your powers. I tried to kill you. Hit me! STILES: He also left you for dead. LIAM: I��wanted you dead!

6x16 Triggers: Liam and Theo No one actually directly says “hit me” in  this one, due to the circumstances, but the sentiment’s there. In this sequence, Liam and Theo are trying to convince Gerard and the hunters that the whole pack is hiding out in the zoo, so Theo goads Liam into hitting him, in order to stage a very audible fight.

THEO: Okay... Then they have to believe us.[shouts] Isn't that right? LIAM: [whispers] Why are you yelling? THEO: [shouts] You got a problem? Oh, that's right, you always have a problem! LIAM: [whispers] What the hell are you doing? THEO: [shouts] Shut up! [punches Liam] Yeah, you see that, Scott? Your little Beta can't even take a punch. And what do you think, Malia?

While there’s a variety of primary textual reasons here, all of them deal with personal issues between the pair, and all of them involve some level of catharsis for the person doing the punching. Taken all together, it’s honestly a pretty troubling pattern, especially given the inclusion of an actual canonical abuse victim initiating and receiving the violence.

TL;DR

This is a writer issue, not a character issue. The serious narrative context conflicts with the comedic framing in a way that is honestly baffling to me, and it doesn’t fit the established pattern of Scott’s character and actions. Moreover, it’s an example of the writers’ apparent belief that interpersonal conflict can and should be solved through consensual violence.

The pattern we do see, is that the Scott is saddened by the knowledge that Allison has moved on, but he’s glad that she and Isaac are happy. Similarly, Allison is saddened that Scott is moving on as well, because she does still care for him deeply. Despite their conflicted feelings, neither tries to disrupt the other’s new relationship.

On other shows, that would be a season-long, drama-filled plotline. Here, nothing.

And I legitimately love that so much.

[pretending-ican-write]

Pack Protectors

The basic ‘pack dynamics’ you might need to understand this fic.

McCall pack- Scott McCall, Malia Tate, Liam Dunbar, Theo Raeken and Brett Talbot Hale pack- Derek Hale, Vernon Boyd, Peter Hale, Erica Reyes and Isaac Lahey Emissaries- Jade and Stiles Stilinski Pack people (not weres)- Lydia Martin, Nolan Holloway, Melissa McCall, Sheriff John Stilinski, Jordan Parrish and Chris Argent

Now on with the fic!  5 times they protected the pack and 1 time the pack protected them.

1: Liam and Theo The Stilinski twins were walking through Beacon Hills with their ‘adopted’ brother Liam and Theo.  The latter two were hand in hand whilst Jade and Stiles discussed something Deaton had taught them.

“Am I allowed to ask for brain bleach?” Stiles asked Theo having overheard the conversation.

He smirked, “why on earth would that be Stilinski?”

“Something about Liam and your bed,” the human responded.

His sister piped up, “la la la.  I do not need to hear about my little brother’s sex life!”

“Nobody said anything about sex,” Liam defended half-heartedly.

From across the road, a young woman called out, “get a room fags!”

Jade spun around, “what the hell did you just say to them?”

“You heard.  They shouldn’t be flaunting whatever this is in public,” she responded.

Stiles spoke, “and you shouldn’t be yelling across the street.  It’s bad manners.”

The woman glared at them as she ducked into the post office.  Stiles turned around to see his sister being held back by Theo.

“Hey hey hey.  JJ, calm down.  Deep breaths sweetheart,” he was talking to her quietly whilst Liam was on the phone to, Stiles presumed, Isaac.

Theo caught Stiles’ eye and mouthed a quick thank you.

2: Derek The Stilinski twins were in the supermarket buying the weekly shopping for the Hale-McCall pack, which was a lot considering the number of people they were feeding.  They were stood at the checkout paying for the food when they overheard a couple of women talking.

“Have you seen how good that Hale lad is looking?” The first one said.

The other nodded, “yeah.  It’s a pity he lives alone in that massive house.  I’d certainly be up for some of that.”

“Hold up a minute,” Jade interrupted, “what gives you the right to talk about him like that?”

Stiles continued, “besides, if you must know he doesn’t live by himself.  There is a number of people who might have something to say if they overheard you.”

“What’s so wrong with window shopping?” The second woman asked innocently.

He groaned and continued again, “he is not for sale!  He isn’t an object.  Plus he’s spoken for so shop somewhere else.”

With that, the twins picked up their shopping and walked out to the car park where they loaded the bags into the back of the Jeep.  Stiles started the car and drove them back to the Hale house.  

They arrived back home where they were greeted by Isaac and Erica who helped them unload the shopping bags and bring them into the kitchen where Derek was stood with Argent.

“Hey babe,” he greeted Stiles with a kiss on the cheek, “I heard you defended my honour at the shop.”

The younger boy blushed, “and how did you hear that?”

“I may or may not have text him on way back,” Jade said with a smirk from where she was stood between Isaac’s legs who was sat on the counter.

Her brother groaned, “oh thanks, sis.  What was I meant to do?  Let two random women talk about how they would like to have their way with you?”

“Hey!  I did my part too!” she added defensively.

Derek chuckled, “yeah yeah JJ.  Thanks for protecting my honour.”

“Anytime Der,” Jade said with a salute.

3: Nolan and Brett All the members of the Hale-McCall pack were gathered in the living room of the Hale house for the fortnightly pack meeting.  Stiles, Boyd and Erica were sat on one sofa watching something on Stiles’ phone.  Argent, Parrish, the Sheriff and Derek were sat at the dining room table going over anything that might have been supernatural over the week.  Liam and Jade were playing a racing game with Theo and Isaac either side encouraging their respective partner.  Scott, Malia and Lydia were in the kitchen with Melissa preparing fajitas for everybody.  Peter was sat in an armchair on his laptop whilst Nolan and Brett were curled up on the other sofa.

“Is there any reason you two are sat on your lonesome?” Theo asked from across the room.

Brett looked up, “you what?”

“You two are supposed to be in the pack yet you spend all your time together at pack meetings,” he continued.

The werewolf glared, “well I’m sorry but you haven’t exactly done much to help welcome us in.”

“Right you two pack it in,” Jade demanded whilst continuing to beat Liam, “Theo your input was not required and he is completely right.  And Brett, try not to take what he says to heart, he’s an idiot.”

Both weres glared at the emissary before silently continuing with what they were doing.

Scott watched from the kitchen doorway how Jade had handled the situation and went to Derek, “she’s really come into herself hasn’t she?”

“Jade?  Yeah.  She can put them all back in their place,” the other alpha agreed.

“Tea is ready!  Form an orderly queue or none of you are getting any!” Melissa called from the kitchen.

4: Isaac It was the middle of the night in the Hale house and the sound of rain bouncing off the roof could be heard throughout the house.  Jade and Isaac were cuddled up together in their bedroom sleeping soundly.  

Isaac began shifting in his sleep, causing Jade to wake up when he elbowed her accidentally.  She sat up, rubbed her eyes and looked to her right to see her boyfriend having a nightmare.  She quickly moved to try and shake him awake.

“Isaac, hey.  Wake up, baby.  You’re having a nightmare and I need you to wake up for me,” Jade spoke quietly to him.

Isaac shot up quickly, sitting next to Jade as he breathed heavily.  He was visibly sweating and his hands were shaking.  Jade pulled him tightly into a hug once she realised he was having a panic attack.

She whispered in his ear, “you’re okay.  It was just a dream, it wasn’t real.  I’ve got you.  It can’t hurt you.”

After a few minutes, Isaac’s breathing returned to normal and he sat up.

“Was it about your dad again?” Jade asked.

He nodded, “yeah.  The same one with the freezer.”

“Now do you want to go back to sleep or we can watch a film?  Nothing scary though otherwise, I’ll be having nightmares!” She asked.

Isaac laughed, “can we watch Horton Hears a Who?”

“Of course,” Jade responded as she reached for her laptop.

5: Erica Malia, Brett, Erica and Stiles had gone out clubbing for Malia’s birthday somewhere in the city.  The rest of the pack had chosen not to join them as they didn’t particularly enjoy clubs.  Malia and Brett were both semi-drunk on the dance floor whilst Stiles and Erica were sat in a nearby booth sampling the club’s variety of cocktails.  

Around halfway into their Pina Coladas, a guy at least twice their age slid into the booth next to Erica.  He was visibly drunk and his breath stank of whiskey.

“Hey, sweetheart.  How about you ditch this loser and I’ll show you a good time?” He slurred as he slid his arm around the blonde.

Erica moved his arm, “I’m good thanks.  We’re just here for my friend’s birthday.”

“Well, I’m sure your ‘friend’,” he air quoted, “won’t mind us leaving him.  In fact, I doubt a sissy like him could treat you like a real woman.”

At that point, Stiles had had enough, “mate if I were you I’d leave.”

“And why’s that?” he leered at the younger boy.

The emissary stood up, “because she’s my sister and if you try anything on her I’ll shove your arm so far up your ass it’ll come out your mouth.  Now get lost.”

The guy, clearly put off, left the booth to annoy somebody else.

“Thanks, Batman,” Erica smiled.

Stiles gave her a grin, “anytime Catwoman.  Now, what do you say to a sex on the beach?” He suggested with a wink.

“I’m game,” she laughed and returned the wink.

+1: Don’t screw with the pack As was expected with being the ‘protectors’ of Beacon Hills the Hale-McCall pack had to occasionally deal with a rogue supernatural creature or two.  This weekend’s activity involved handling a rogue werewolf from a pack they had contact with in Utah.  The weres had been joined by their emissaries, Nolan, Parrish and Argent who were sufficiently armed to trap the wolf.

After splitting into small groups to search the reserve, they met up in the middle to come up with a new strategy.  

“He has to be here somewhere right Chris?” Jade asked worriedly, “you used the emitters.”

Argent nodded, “it’s quite possible he’s just slipped between where we’ve been searching.”

“Okay.  We’ll split up again and have another look.  This guy has to be found soon,” Derek commanded.

Jade and Stiles paired off to walk the perimeter to ensure all the emitters were still working properly so the rogue wolf couldn’t escape.  About halfway through their checks, they found an emitter that seemed to be giving a weaker signal than the rest.

Stiles checked it was still on before pulling Jade into the shadows, “chances are this wolf knows that emitter is about to die.  I suggest we text the others and get them to surround this area then when the emitter dies, which shouldn’t be long, we can corner him.”

“Okay.  I’ll send a text to everyone,” his sister agreed and pulled her phone out.

Before Jade could text the pack, a large body jumped down in front of them.  The male stood up and towered over the twins, blue eyes glowing in the night air.  It was the rogue werewolf they’d been trying to catch.

“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that,” he said, gesturing to Jade’s phone.

Stiles spoke to the wolf, “do what?  We were just trying to make our way back to my car and go home.  We were having a picnic you see and we’ve managed to get lost.  I don’t suppose you’d be able to show us the way back do you?  We’d really appreciate it.  Our dad will flip if we get back late.”

“Don’t lie.  Your with that pack,” he growled.

The human laughed, “what pack?  I told you we came out to have a picnic and enjoy the view then we got lost and now we really need to get back before curfew.”

“Oh so you aren’t the emissary?” the wolf persisted.

Jade cut in, “I thought that was a political thing.”

Just as the wolf had had enough and was about to take a swipe at the twins, an arrow went flying into his arm.  The werewolf howled in pain as the rest of the pack came into view.  Derek and Isaac were fully ‘wolfed out’ and hurried to the scene.  They pinned the wolf back against a nearby tree so that Parrish could handcuff the wolf.

“Nice shot Nolan,” Jade said as she brushed her jeans off.

He blushed, “how did you know it was me?”

“Because Chris can’t aim that well with a bow,” Scott answered.

Isaac moved to check his girlfriend, “are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.  Credits to my idiot brother for stalling him so long,” Jade grinned as he pulled her into a hug.

Stiles rolled his eyes, “how did you guys know where we were?”

“Your sister,” Theo began, “sent a text with your location whilst you were stalling him.”

Jade smiled, “hey I have some good ideas occasionally.”

“Now what’s going on with him?” Malia asked, nodding towards where Parrish was holding the rogue.

Derek answered her, “I’ll let his alpha know we’ve got him.  We’ll take him to the loft and he can be kept there until his pack get him then it’s their problem.”

“Now I don’t know about you guys but I’m starving.  Chinese anyone?” Stiles suggested.

Peter rolled his eyes, “honestly anyone would think you were the one with a were appetite.”

-/-/-

None of these characters except Jade Stilinski belong to me and all credit goes to Teen Wolf for their creation.

[mojoflower]

Magical/Mage/Spark Stiles fic recs (90%Sterek, 5%Steter)

A Moving Sea Between the Shores by foxtricks (knightofbows) M.  26k.  Complete.  They're so fucked. They fucked up so bad. And it's all Stiles' fault." // Love one another but make not a bond of love: let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls." - Khalil Gibran 

What delicious torture and pain and mistakes and regret and fear and suspense, unf. Stiles, it turns out, is quite a powerful mage, but he DOES make a small miscalculation... which very nearly leads to the deaths of the whole pack, to his imprisonment and torture. If only he and Derek had Bonded first, they might not have fallen to this point. But they hadn't....

Chapters alternate from what leads up to the Fuck Up and what follows. Derek is a good Alpha, Stiles is a good Emissary, but each thinks the other deserves better than what they could offer. Fully satisfying ending with sufficient comfort.

Dream of Life Again by BarlowGirl E.  18k.  Complete.  “You better be ready,” Lydia says as she cleans dirt out from under her nails with an antiseptic wipe. Stiles can smell the lemon scent even from where he stands a few feet away. She’s probably going to end up covered in blood in a few moments, but she likes to be in control in any way she can, so he doesn’t tease her about this. “It’s time to start.” // “I’m ready,” Stiles says and he’s pretty sure it’s not even a lie. Hopefully. // Scott, Stiles, and Lydia each sit at one point of the triskelion that Lydia’s drawn on the tarp. The center is a tight knot of some language Stiles had never even heard of before this, written in ink in tiny writing. It’s beautiful and also makes him slightly nauseated. Lydia makes both cuts, so the blood drops from Stiles’ arm and Scott’s, too, into the center of the triskelion. There’s wolfsbane on Scott’s knife, not enough to make him sick, but enough to keep him from healing too quickly. // It’s a surprisingly simple thing, after that, for what they’re doing. Blood, a few words, and a little magic. // Just those things, and, for the first time in three years, Laura Hale gasps in a breath. // Or: Resurrected Laura!!!

What an interesting story. It felt strangely... clinical?... distant, maybe. Stiles is very removed from everyone, and there's alot of teasing in the beginning as to why (we never DO learn the full story there). Any road, Stiles has a connection to some veerry powerful magic, but doesn't really want to think about it too much, much less admit it. Meanwhile, he continues with his distant-yet-close relationship with the pack, and his strange dance with Derek, and just. It was very interesting.

Such Things Don't Bear Repeating by Allizane E.  25k.  Complete.   A wizard, a wolf, and a boy. Or: spells and magic can never truly substitute for strength. (Harry Potter AU, in triplicate.)

This was beautiful, flowed like poetry, kind of. Three parts, three points of view, and we slowly watch Stiles grow, watch his powers develop. I never did figure out what he was supposed to be: he's a bit sociopathic, but has every reason to be (he's missing his tongue when Deaton first finds him.) I probably wouldn't have read it if I'd noticed the dark!Stiles tag, but the story didn't really come across that way. More wild!Stiles, and the future's wide open. ******* So Derek takes the twisted threads of blood and bone and fire (because they’d all tasted like ash to the wolf, like someone was already burning them up), he takes them and ties the loose ends to Stiles, because what else is there to do?

The Long Way Round by exclamation E.  180k.  Complete.  A magical accident sends Stiles back in time. Now he's stuck in New York, living with Derek and Laura, and the only way to get back to his own time is to learn to use magic. Meanwhile, he must figure out how much he can tell them about their future. Can he warn them about the dangers they face? Can he change his own past?And can he trust the creature known as Bookworm, who seems to know him better than he knows himself?

oh. my. fucking. god.

this is astonishing.

The one where Stiles is MAGIC, whoa, that is such a focus, and he's powerful, and you get the learning montage and everything. (He's also the ouroboros, which explains how he got sent back in time to hang out with Derek and Laura when they're living in New York.) The one with the dragon, Bookworm, and the magic shop, and the accidental coven, and the vengence ghost, and where Derek is a dancer at a club (lol) and ALL THE GOOD THINGS.

i am addicted to death (so remind me what it’s like to live) by cywscross T.  18k.  1/2 but it reads like it’s complete.   Stiles is sixteen years old. He has already died seventy-eight times.

Holy shit. (This says 1/2, but it's tight and complete, no worries.)

Magic Marker by Batwynn G.  3k.  Complete.  Look, just because he’s magical, doesn’t mean Stiles has to be an adult, right? // Where Scott keeps quoting Spider Man when he comes in the room, his dad keeps getting that pinched look around his eyes when he accidentally turns the microwave into a portal to another timeline, Lydia has stopped wasting her breath by heaving great, disappointed sighs at him, and Derek… Derek tells him to get it out of his system somewhere not here. Which is actually pretty nice, for someone with such judgmental eyebrows.

I would SO love to get a bigger peek into this world, heh.

In Which Stiles is Secretly Magic by apocryphal T.  27k.  Complete.   All Stiles wants from life is to learn to control his magic, keep his grades up, and not die horribly while saving Beacon Hills from supernatural threats. It's all going pretty well until Derek Hale, werewolf extraordinaire, has to go and ask him on a date. That asshole.

lol... stiles is a hoot.

Attach me to your world by artisan447  E.  27k.  Complete. Turns out Stiles is magic. He's as surprised about that as anyone.

Sweet, sexy and intense: everything you want a surprise bonding fledgling magic fic to be.

Growing Up, Growing Strong by cywscross T.  10k.  Complete.   Stiles is adopted by the Hales.

Lovely series of snapshots. Stiles at 10 saves the Hales, but loses his dad, and Talia takes him in, but it's Peter he attaches to. There's selective mutism, slow integration, kidnapping, self-rescue, discovery of magic (spark), and he's 16 in the end, but I think the rating could have easily remained a G. (We'll have to use our imaginations for the rest.)

Red Witch by rootbeer  T.  34k.  Complete.  The red hair of a banshee. The red eyes of an alpha. The red hoodie of a mage. The red of fire burning.Derek Hale has been a prisoner to the hunters since they burned his family alive. But now someone has come to save him: skinny, defenseless Stiles--147 lbs of skin and fragile bones. Turns out, sarcasm isn't his only weapon.

Ah, this hit the spot. Derek's a mess, poor baby, he's spent years locked in a cell in isolation being taunted by Kate when Stiles shows up as a captive in the next cell. It's about everything you'd want. (I love the protective fire around Derek, it's perfect.) Stiles is a BAMF, Derek is a beta. And those stories about the Red Witch and his/her companions? Not just fairy tales.

Children's Tales by artemis69 G.  5k.  Complete.  Be careful, little girl. // Don’t go causing troubles in Beacon Hills, because the Hales live there, little girl. // Keep away from Beacon Hills, little girl, or the Hales will destroy you. // --Or: In a world where the Hales are alive and the protectors of the town of Beacon Hills, the humans politely fake ignorance of their not-really-human status, and they all live happily ever after. // Then Kate comes in. // Well. // Tries to.

How much did I love this story, omg, it's kind of hilarious: Kate (POV) goes Hale-hunting and is thwarted at EVERY TURN because the whole damn town knows who she is, and who Derek is, and the character descriptions are so funny: "The annoying other kid is still there and both of them are mowing the lawn of a little white house. Hale is very focused, working methodically in parallel strips. His friend is running in circles around a rose bush like a rabbit on cocaine."

Inhuman History by Amazonia_8 E.  32k.  7/?  Stiles doesn't remember much about what happened the night he was to be introduced to the mysterious Hale family. He knows his mother is dead, but nobody can tell him why. He thinks it might have something to do with the things that happen to him, or that he can make happen, even though he's never been able to control it. Now it's just him and his father, an invalid he must spend all his time caring for, scraping by in a run down house in a run down town, miles away from the life he once knew. // Until strange things begin to happen, starting with the great black wolf that shows up at his door and the stranger man that claims he knows his father. Claims that Stiles is in danger and that it is his duty to protect him.

Hooooly guacamole. This one is a RIDE, I'm pretty sure I only breathed once in the whole first half. Only 7 chapters written, and it looks like it'll stay that way, and the story isn't NEAR complete, but you do get to end on a very satisfying sex scene, and this author is so good that even a glimpse into this world she's building is worth the time you put in to read it. The first chapters are such a tease, with references to things like John being paralyzed and mute, and Stiles having flashing memories of 'before', and it doesn't get explained for a while (it does eventually, tho, don't worry), and wow, it's just fantastic.

The Road Less Traveled by gryvon E.  25k.  Complete.   Stiles doesn't want to die in a basement. No one is going to die in the Argent's basement, not if he can help it.

ALL the Stiles!whump and hurt/comfort (although the comfort for the first round of hurt is rest-of-pack rather than Derek, but it's totally emotionally satisfying. This is the one where Stiles starts practicing magic by twiddling a pencil and then gets to firebomb some ghoul-things in the cemetery.

Night Owls Early Birds by Lissadiane T.  24k.  Complete.  Confession: Stiles is afraid of having magic. // The Spark had been cool. It had been small, manageable. He could do some funky stuff with Mountain Ash, all with the power of belief. // And now here he is, his Spark blown wide open, apparently coming down with a fatal case of magical overload, and all that stands between him and bleeding out is a grumpy owl that looks suspiciously like a feathered version of Derek Hale. // (In which Stiles learns he's a witch, but instead of a wand and a trip to Diagon Alley, he gets blood magic, a grumpy and reluctant owl as his companion, and an accidental blood bond with Derek Hale.)

Oh. This was... really intense, I wasn't expecting that, somehow, the summary made it seem kind of funny. Stiles' magic is no fucking joke, and it LITERALLY tears him apart sometimes, like, peeling his hands inside out and crushing them kind of thing... and all the extraordinary pain that goes with it. When they say blood magic, that means there's gallons of it everywhere. Which is AMAZING, and the intensity is wonderful, don't get me wrong, it's unique among the 'Stiles discovers he is magic' stories, because it really does seem more like a curse than a gift. Steve the owl is a hoot (lol), and Derek's quiet loyalty and fierce protectiveness is lovely. It's a fantastic read, and so is its sequel.

In Which Stiles Finds He Much Prefers When Interesting Things Happen to Somebody Else by Zoom Zoom (PaperLillyWebs) T.  21k.  Complete.  “Finish what you start,” the skull rasps at him, making him jump. When he looks up, the skull is just as still as before.Loosely based on Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wayne Jones.

What a fun story! Stiles the apprentice is every bit of adorable, his Master Hale is a shadowy, mean kind of figure, and something's going on where none of the ends match up. The story borrows the Howl's Moving Castle world, but that's all, none of the story or characters. I love it.

How to please your house spirit by Lesatha  M.  14k.  Complete.  Derek startled awake in the middle of the night. For a split second he didn’t know why, then as he felt a strange weight on his chest, he raised his head and looked down. And stayed speechless. // There was a tiny creature, barely the size of Derek’s whole hand, sitting on him. It had a human shape, from what Derek could see.It looked furious.

ohmygod this is infinitely adorable, Stiles is a (murderous, multitasking, shapeshifting) little shit (so is Peter) and Derek is utterly wrapped around his (occasionally) tiny finger.

Of Werewolves and Tentacles by Guede E.  173k.  Complete.   Stiles Stilinski and Scott McCall, childhood best friends who were separated, now reunite to get to know each other again. Since Scott's a werewolf and Stiles is a new graduate of Miskatonic University (which is proving strangely attractive to Peter-Hale-shaped werewolves), they've got quite a bit to catch up on.

So glorious. A lot of fun to read, lots of action and complexity and I know basically nothing about Lovecraft, and that didn't matter at all. Stiles is great in this, very pushy, very much an asshole, and still got that old insecurity inside... which, coincidentally, is very much what Peter is like. They're a lovely match. (The fifth story introduces Derek into their dynamic, but only in the end, and, sadly, we never get the sexin' for that -- aside from some strange dreams in Part 6 -- cause it would be delicious.)

And what are the odds that I'd read two sentient house fics in the same month? (The other being the equally fabulous When sparks fly by LunaCanisLupus_22. Sentient house is in Part 5 and isn't very friendly.)

The Foul Rag and Bone Shop of the Heart by WritersAreLiars M.  35k.  6/?  “Stiles. Did I just watch you sell that man a hex-bag full of crushed caffeine pills and rocks from our own parking lot?” // “I threw in some sage too.” // -Stiles may have lost his job and his place as Alan's Mastery student, but at least his former teacher had the decency to set up an introduction to Peter Hale, werewolf and necromancer. // It looked like Stiles wasn't as done forming impossible infatuations on his teachers as he thought. // (At least this time he's legal.)

Entirely delightful and unique... author creates a fantastic world and Stiles' blithe abandon of traditions works very well with Peter's scheming. Worth reading even if it's never finished.

You Only Live Once...or Twice by WonderWolf E.  33k.  Complete.  “Anything,” Derek’s eyes are determined, boring into Stiles’.Stiles huffs a laugh, “Careful there, big guy. Don’t want to be promising anything to every necromancer you meet. Some might ask for your soul or someth—” // “I’ll give you my soul to bring her back,” Derek says, his voice steady and strong with resolve, “if that’s what you want.” // Stiles’ mouth gapes open for a moment before his brain kicks into gear and he stutters out, “N-no, I don’t ask for that. I only ask for money.” // (Or the one in which Stiles is a necromancer who needs help stopping a rogue alpha and Derek is the solution, but at what cost?)

Interesting premise.

Red String verse by gryvon E.  13k.  Completed works, incomplete series.  Peter had given up hope of ever finding his soulmate until the red string on his finger leads him to a four-year-old. He's going to Hell. Or jail. Or both.

Everything about this series is perfection. How Peter is so utterly astonished and appalled at the age difference. How Stiles turns out to be tremendously and precociously magic. The sexual tension when Stiles gets tired of waiting (and Peter goes to the station to turn himself in, lol.

Those Are The Days That Bind Us by s_a_m  M.  63k.  Completed works, incomplete series.  His father wasn’t stupid. He was an officer of the law, trained to look for patterns. He confronted Stiles about werewolves and they shouted and Stiles tried to explain but his father was so, so, so mad, more mad than Stiles had ever seen him, ever in all his life and then his father looked at him and said,“It’s like you’re not my son anymore.” // And Stiles broke.

Really good.  Poor bb Stiles, life generally sucks hard.  When he leaves, he has a lot of adventures and new friends that I DON'T instinctively dislike (what can I say, I'm very loyal to my OTP:  I generally hate it when they split up and one of them seems to move on).  There's VERY little Derek in this, even though about 50% of the story is in Beacon Hills both before and after the 7 years of running away.  Maybe part 3 will have a little more Sterek.  But, yeah, Stiles is badass, so that's awesome.  The author writes well and the story moves quickly.

Professional Werewolf Witch by reptilianraven G.  5k.  Complete.  "Are you going to buy anything else?" Professional Eyebrows says and Stiles would like to buy him. A cup of coffee. On a date. // He just ends up pointing at the crate of whatever the fuck is behind Professional Eyebrows' head and says, "Uh, a box of that stuff." // P.E. turns, glances at the crate, and raises an eyebrow at Stiles. "You want a box of charmed rattlesnake tail?" God, magic is so fucking weird. // "Yeah." Stiles nods because he's making an ass out of himself. The hipster vampire browsing in the corner is not so subtly laughing at him. The sooner he leaves the better. // -The one where Derek Hale is a Professional Werewolf Witch who owns a magic shop and Stiles fails at being smooth on a regular basis.

so fucking funny

I Know Where Babies Come From, Derek by DiscontentedWinter M.  52k.  Complete.  Stiles finds a baby on the porch.It looks exactly like him. // Well, this is awkward.

Funny and unique and gripping (and there's one part that's simply fucking heartbreaking, god every.time. I bawl like a baby). I love this so much. It's totally one of my return-again-and-again-comfort-fics (even though there's very little that's slow-paced and domestic about it).

When sparks fly by LunaCanisLupus_22 E.  87k.  Completed stories, unfinished series, but that doesn’t matter.  “Derek,” Stiles thunders. “Were you ever going to tell me your house is trying to hook us up?” // Derek's head snaps up, eyes wide and scenting the evident crackle of magic in the air. // Or the one where spark!Stiles moves into an enchanted apartment block owned by a grumpy alpha and is completely oblivious to the building's efforts to matchmake them.

OH, golly, I love this, it's so funny and fabulous and unique and THE HOUSE, GOD, I LOVE THE HOUSE, it really is all up in everybody's business. Don't worry about the chapters x/? Each chapter is its own complete storyline, so feel free to jump in any time, you'll never feel like you've been left hanging. I absolutely LOVE the irreverent (and yet, very well-conceived and detailed) urban fantasy vibe. And I love every character just the way I like to.

(Just read another fic with a sentient house (fifth story) and urban fantasy tones: Of Werewolves and Tentacles by Guede, which was a delight.

Untamed by rosepetals42 T.  28k.  Complete.  Of course, the transfer kid gets mentioned because transfers are rare, but the news isn’t that exciting. In fact, according to Laura, no one even seems to know his first name. The only thing anyone has really figured out about him is that he’s American. And that’s not exactly hard because he obviously has an accent. // The only thing Derek really knows is that, despite other reports, he seems quiet enough, prefers to work alone, and has the most amazing shade of amber eyes that Derek has ever seen. // Not that he’s looking. Obviously. // OR: A Harry Potter AU where Stiles is a Slytherin transfer student and Derek is the grumpy Gryffindor who falls in love with him. // There are also potions, elves, and falcons involved. Oh, and illegal use of magic. Obviously.

Best. This is the best Hogwarts/Teen Wolf AU I've ever read, hands down. All the feels.

A Wild Heart's Desire by mikkimouse  T.  13k.  Complete.  If there's one thing Stiles Stilinski knows, it's that Deputy Derek Hale absolutely Does Not Like him. The only reason Derek even tolerates him is because their kids are worryingly codependent. // So Stiles is understandably confused when a very feral Derek shows up in his backyard after a call gone wrong and proceeds to move in with him.

Aw, feral!Derek is so sweet. And so is Stiles. And both of them are hella oblivious.

A Life for a Life, Makes the Whole Wo rld Bound by augopher M.  91k.  Complete.   Stiles was lonely; there was no other way of putting it. The Nogitsune had left the pack a wary of him, not that they thought it had been his fault. No, they worried it would happen again. Once bitten, twice shy. // The morning after his 18th birthday, his torso was covered in mysterious green tattoos. He hadn’t been that drunk. He'd definitely remember that. Great. Something else to make him feel like a freak. Insomnia led him to his mother’s diary and a tale of how she helped an odd man once who gave her the warning, “Be careful of your wishes three." Everything clicked into place. // So...he was a djinni. He subtly changed things about himself. More muscle? Done. Better hair? Done and done. End his crippling insecurity? Done, done, done. He hid his new gift until he found himself bound to Derek. // With Deaton’s help, they translated meanings in his tattoos, but they were incomplete. A passage of his 'Rules and Regulations' was missing. Everything was fine dandy until Stiles’ new powers and penchant for mischief and karmic retribution threatened to destroy him, fracture his mind, and turn him into something which couldn’t be contained. // Could the pack save him in time, and at what price?

Court of the Bitter King by The Feels Whale (miscellea)  T.  7k.  Incomplete series, but that’s okay.  There’s a reason Stiles refuses point-blank to take off his shirt in public. That reason would be the massive number of …somewhat illegal tattoos he’s had done over the years.  //  It’s not that his dad doesn’t know about the tattoos, it’s more that his dad doesn’t like to think about them. It’s a mom thing or more precisely, it’s a ‘mom’s side of the family’ thing and Stiles’ maternal relatives make his dad very, very nervous.

Interesting. Dreamy and a little surreal. Third part is unfinished, but then, so are dreams, often.

The Time Travelling Werewolf's Confused Spirit Guide by The Feels Whale (miscellea) G.  5k.  Complete.  

Normally you don’t imagine yourself as living in the dystopian future that hapless time travelers accidentally stumble into. // Or: that one where Stiles learns the hard way that reality is not static, time is not a river, and sometimes the way things are is not the way they were supposed to be.

Sweet and weird. And it all worked out in the end, but I'd miss asshole Derek.

Her Blood on His Bones by secondstar  E.  123k.  Complete.  Stiles may be cursed but that doesn’t mean he’s going to lay down and die. He’s going to fight. He won’t stop, he can’t stop. If he does, they win.  [Daemons, Dark Materials universe.]

Aching for you by LittleRedEmissary T.  45k.  Complete.  When Stiles tries to cast a protection spell on Derek and accidentally casts a spell much stronger than either of them expected, the duo has to relearn everything that they've learned about protecting the pack, because the old methods won't do anymore. With the infamous Winchesters coming to town Derek hopes that the hunters will just drive through town, but the pack has never been good that laying low.

Love this. God, Dean's an asshole. But he gets better.

Writ in Hecate's ink on willing skin by Lenore M.  6k.  Complete.   "As you're always so fond of pointing out, you're the alpha. When bad shit happens to you, it affects all of us. If someone wants to use your alpha mojo or your wolf force or," Stiles waves his hand, "whatever you want to call it for diabolical purposes? We need to be ready."

Beacon Hills Mysteries  by miss_aphelion  T.  80k.  Complete.  Stiles appears alone at the doors of the emergency room the morning after the full moon, covered in blood with a deep slash torn across his left side. He's suffering from hypovolemic shock and barely conscious and he won't tell anyone what happened—not his hospital appointed psychiatrist, not his father. Not even his pack. // The list of suspects is disconcertedly short. There were only seven others in the woods with Stiles that night: Derek, Scott, Boyd, Erica, Isaac, Jackson and Allison. And none of them remember the night in quite the same way.

My note for the second story:  Whoa, so intense and stressful and simply amazing. Really, this whole series is the bomb. (Even with no sex!) And super!magic!Stiles like whoa.

Patterns of Intention by drunktuesdays E.  17k.  Complete.  Derek looked like the stuff of his deepest fantasies. His shirt was rumpled where Stiles had his hands in it, and he was breathing hard as well, chest heaving. His eyes—his eyes were glazed over and he looked stunned, like he’d been—like Stiles had—“No,” Stiles said, blood draining from his face. The word was croaky and felt like it had to be wrenched out of his chest. “God, no.”

The one where Stiles' magic is expressed verbally, and he starts to think he magically is making Derek want him back.

No spell quite like your smile by charimiel T.  29k.  Complete.  "I’m Stiles by the way. I’d shake your hand, but the stuff on my hands isn’t actually ink and I don’t want to subject anyone else to that.” .... Derek’s really just exuding an aura of ‘what the fuck is wrong with this guy’. Stiles gets that a lot actually.OrThe one where Stiles owns a magic shop and Derek probably regrets coming back to Beacon Hills right about now.

Cute.

From Here On by Isa_Iadel M.  97k.  Completed stories, incomplete series.  Stiles Stilinski hasn't been Sheriff for very long and dealing with the aftermath of the attack against the Hales ends up being far more complicated than he ever could have imagined.

Crazy good story, incredible and original world building (really, SO original), and Stiles is magic! to the max and totally wonderful protector of the town and all the characters, OCs and those well-loved, are just amazing. (Derek is underdeveloped, which is a pity, but everyone else is so riveting that it's alright.) Can't wait for the next installment.

B.S.T.P.H.T. by dornfelder E.  27k.  Complete.  Before Derek has the presence of mind to object, Stiles pushes the paper in his hands and makes for his jeep. “Just read it, okay?” is the last thing he says before slamming the door shut. // He starts the engine, and drives away in record time with gravel scrunching under his tires while Derek stands there dumfounded. He accelerates unusually fast, and the jeep’s back lights disappear into the night.What. The. Fuck.

dream-walker by hoars E.  5k.  Complete.   This is not the behavior Stiles was expecting from a werewolf he’s been dream invading. To be honest, Stiles expected more blood, bruises and begging. He was not expecting creepy Derek to go to sleep next to him.

Vision without action is just a dream. by Mynuet   T.  17k.  Complete.  Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world. (Joel Barker) // Stiles has never known how to leave things well enough alone. If the root of their unhappiness is Derek losing the love of his life, then that's the problem Stiles is going to fix, no matter what it takes. He probably should have realized that things never go according to plan."

Perfect!

How I Met My Werebunny by Moku T.  20k.  Complete.  “This is going to end in tears,” Scott told Derek while he watched the man easily lifting Stiles’ desk up with one hand and driving nails into the ceiling with the thumb of the other. “Probably mine.” // Or:When a Stiles and a Failwolf love each other very much, they’ll engage in a prank war. Basically, it's a mating ritual for dorks in love.

So precious!

Shakespeare Was a Wolf by mommymuffin Unrated.  (I’d rate it an M.)  40k.  (Incomplete series, but that’s fine.)  Derek gets turned into a wolf by a witch. Naturally, he expects Stiles to fix it.

“To say that Stiles flailed before he hit the ground in the most spectacular display of falling down the world has ever seen would be a gross understatement.”

Spark by rispacooper  M.  10k.  Complete.  Derek had never actually seen Stiles in his full dragon form. If he was being honest with himself, he wasn’t sure he wanted to. The first time Derek had properly met Stiles, spoken with him, he’d had a hard time not reacting to the heat of him, far too reminiscent of the lick of flames at Derek’s skin. Dragons exuded heat, Derek had known that, intellectually. They might look like cold-blooded reptiles but they were creatures of fire.

Derek did not have good memories of fire. Stiles couldn’t have been expected to remember that, but it hadn’t helped that he’d focused on Derek with those impossibly wide eyes of lustrous brown and then let out of a puff of marijuana-scented breath and announced he’d take Derek instead of a sandwich.

Lord knows it would be the first time by uraneia  E.  12k.  Complete.  Stiles is home from Berkeley for the summer, but only because he promised the pack. He'd rather not see Derek, because whatever the thing was that they were doing, they're not doing it anymore, and it sucks. // Unfortunately, he doesn't have a choice. The betas tried a magical remedy for Derek's melancholy, and now Stiles has a three-year-old who looks like Derek. Stiles doesn't know how to deal with that, and he definitely doesn't know how to tell the betas he and Derek were secret fuck buddies for a year and a half.

Another kidfic: ending has a nice twist.

Of Bananas, Babies and Buzzkills by calrissian18  T.  25k.  Complete.  “Are you, um—What are you doing back?” He looks as uncomfortable as Stiles feels and that’s some small consolation.“You know, the usual. Witches, I’m the highlander now, magic bananas.”

Oh, god, the one where Stiles magics up Protozooey, and he's SOO CUTE.

I was a little disappointed in the ending (little rushed), but ALL the rest of it is so delicious it's ok.

(Once in a) Blue Moon by clarkoholic, skywardsmiles  E.  60k.  Complete.   Stiles and Derek are getting along, but they’re not a family, and they’re sure as hell not mates. Christ, they’re basically just two stupid guys who happened to get pregnant because of a full moon and sheer dumb luck.

Oh, the angst, the pining, the guilt, the blame, the anger. Total pain-fest while we watch Stiles nearly die from the burden of the pregnancy. Lovely sweet ending, of course.

A Heart is a Heavy Burden by lielabell  T.  41k.  Complete.  In Which Stiles: is accosted by unhappy witches, becomes friends with fire demons, is rescued by darkly handsome wizards, discovers hidden inner depths, is introduced to princes, and finds true love. Though not necessarily in that order. // (Or the Howl’s Moving Castle AU fusion fic you never knew you wanted but are delighted to have.)

Hale's Moving Castle. (I need say no more.) -- not magic!Stiles, but wizard!Derek is just as good.

Haven't Forgotten My Way Home by tryslora E.  101k.  Complete.   Stiles walked away from Beacon Hills and never planned on coming home. Now he needs help, and there's nowhere else he can go other than back to his childhood home and the pack he left behind.

Great story: intricate, suspenseful and unique. It stands well on it's own, no need to read others in the series if you don't want to.

Stiles, why is Derek Hale passed out on our front porch? bymarguerite_26, mothlights  E.  4k.  Complete.  Stiles doesn't hear the knock on his front door, but he figures there must have been one, because now his dad's calling out to him, "Stiles, do you know why Derek Hale just passed out on our front porch?" // Stiles freezes, carton of milk half way to his mouth. He looks around the empty room, wondering if it has any answers. Derek Hale just passed out on his front porch -- sounds like one of the signs of the coming apocalypse.

Breathe Me by mommymuffin Unrated (I’d give it T or M)  127k.  Complete.

Stiles tries desperately, but the air just won’t come to him. He can’t do it himself. He needs someone. Someone to help him.

And Scott left him.

Fabulous series. Starts as a kind of one-shot, just Stiles-Derek-panic attack, but then the author, lo, encounters plot, and what a plot it is. I love this one, it's fast, doesn't stint on violence, the whole second half is one stressful situation after another, and there is Cor, the amazing wolf made out of the blood spilled between Stiles and Derek, which is a concept I haven't encountered before.

I would rate it an T or an M... there's sex, but it's not described in any detail.

Last Call by grimm  E.  6k.  Complete.   He doesn’t come to The Beacon to pick up people. It’s precisely the reason why he doesn’t go anywhere else. People in this neighborhood know him, know he’s not interested in being hit on, which allows him to have a drink in peace. Derek knows he’s good-looking, but the type of people it attracts disgust him. At least other werewolves can smell the unfriendliness on him and stay away, but that doesn’t stop everyone. He went to a gay bar with his coworker Isaac once and it was horrifying.

Dragon's Breath by trilliath  E.  56k.  Complete.   Between the hunters and the monsters that have interfered with life in Beacon Hills, the pack has had to learn a lot in the last few years, including Stiles teaching himself to practice magic in private. It's not exactly a secret from the pack, but it's not something he's shown much. When it comes time to put his skills to the test, Derek is the only one who finally gets to see Stiles's wild magic put to use saving Erica's life from a new threat in town. //  The aftermath changes something between them, and those tenuous lines tangling them together may mean the difference between life and death for them both.

Lovely, vivid and intense.

In Sanguinem Scriptum Est by secondstar  E.  31k.  Complete.   In order to stop a new onslaught of nightmares from plaguing him, Stiles decides to become an emissary. No longer defenseless, he begins to realize that not everything is as it seems.

Strut on a Line, its Discord and Rhyme by xiaq T, 73k.

“Carry me,” Stiles says.  //  “No.”  //  “But I’m injured.”  //  “You have a rash,” Derek says. “On your arm. Your feet work just fine.”  //  “Please?”  //  “No. You weigh almost as much as I do. And you ate a pound of chicken at lunch.”  //  "Well, yeah, but I pooped like an hour ago, so.”  //  “You’re disgusting.”  //  “Don’t play, you love me.”  //  I do, Derek thinks, relatively horrified. I really do.

Oh, wow, this was so fun:  such a fast read, it just never lagged for a moment.  Not that it's action-packed, because it isn't, but just because the story is so interesting and kept moving right along.  Lots of OCs in this (Paidrag, Teagan, Walsh) and they're fully realized and wonderful.  Stiles is a human adopted into a wolf pack that's been slaughtered a year earlier, and Derek and his dad are in Beacon Hills to help him recover from an extended kidnapping from demons.  Both of them are young (fifteen and later sixteen), so their interactions start out innocent.  Stiles is his usual self:  brash and loud and weirdly confident in himself.  Derek is shy and quiet.  They make a good pair.  Scott is the big brother who is suddenly a guardian.  I pretty much loved every part of this:  especially how Stiles magic just got stronger and stronger.

The Walls Are Breathing In by secondstar  E.  42k.  Complete.  Nothing could go wrong. It was just supposed to be a safe trip to the Nemeton. But this is Beacon Hills and things are rarely that simple. Welcome to the life of Stiles Stilinski.  // Or, that time that Stiles accidentally became a sorcerer against his will.

good story, and I loved the art (great colors)

Out Of Milk... by 74days  M.  88k.  Complete.   Derek Hale moved in with the Stilinskis after acting a hero, much to Stiles distress. However, things take a turn for the strange when his arrival coincides with some strange happenings in Stiles life - that will change the course of the pack forever.

Sooooo magic!Stiles. EXCELLENT story. The angst is strong in this one...

Salutations or Something by ravingrevolution  E.  155k.  Complete.  He needed an actual hobby outside of work where he would interact with actual people who did not live with him or talk to him through the internet or his phone. // Like yoga? His stupid mind supplied in an annoyingly accurate imitation of Scott’s voice. // Stiles sighed. // Like yoga. // “Fuck.”

"He was pretty sure that before he started doing yoga his life had not been an action movie sub-plot, but apparently things had changed. He really would have preferred to have starred in a romantic comedy, but he didn’t often get what he wanted." (Spark Stiles)

What I Did On My Summer Vacation by grimm  E.  119k.  Complete.  There's something weird about Beacon Hills that Stiles can't quite put his finger on. The way everyone in town knows his name the day he arrives. The way they insist the melancholic howling that echoes through the forest every night is just a dog. The way his dad denies getting a dog, even though Stiles comes home to find one sprawled across his bed, some big black thing whose eyes gleam red in the right light. The way that massive oak tree out in the woods vibrates under his touch, pulsing with sickly life. // There's something weird going on in this town, and Stiles is determined to get to the bottom of it.

hope is the thing with feathers by ShanaStoryteller T.  29k.  Complete.  Stiles is ten when he saves the Hales from their burning home and Derek from a wolfsbane bullet, and this establishes a pattern that seem to continue indefinitely."Then he's facing a burning home, and he wraps the hood of his sweatshirt around his mouth before he pushes the door open and steps inside. There's Mr. Hale asleep - he hopes asleep - on the couch, next to - Stiles thinks that's his brother but there are so many Hales, who can keep track. He rushes over and starts shaking him, can see the rise and fall of the man's chest so he knows he's alive, but he's not waking up. //  He shoves away his hood so he can shout, "Mr. Hale! You have to get up, there's a fire! Mr. Hale, get up!" Nothing, he's not even twitching, both of them taking in deep even breaths like they're having the most peaceful of rests, and Stiles is going to cry. "Wake up, wake up, wake up!" //  There's a moment, where all Stiles can hear is the blood rushing in his ears and not the roar of the flames or the creak of wood, then with a violent, silent pop it's all back and both of the men are gasping awake, eyes open and jumping to their feet. "

This is awesome: It starts when Stiles is ten, and he finds himself drawn int the woods in time to pull the Hales from their burning house, and much magic is used on that day, and lo, Stiles is an extremely powerful mage. For all that he's very brave and snarky, he's also very laid-back, and so he rolls with the punches and allows himself to be adopted (more or less) into the Hale clan, even tho they're very, very weird. So for the next five years, he tags along, fights the good fight, discovering new powers along the way, grows a bond with Derek (who hates words, and hates feelings and hates combining the two even worse), keeps his oldest and bestest friend Scott (who is similarly chill about the whole thing), and just blossoms before your eyes. It's fabulous. (So is the whole series.)

Beltane by DevilDoll  E.  8k.  Complete.   "Watching Stiles heal someone has always been a little uncomfortable for Derek, like he's seeing something intimate and private that shouldn't have an audience. That's nothing compared to how it feels." This is an AU in which Stiles has magical healing powers.

Taking Leave by coyotl   M.  91k.  Complete.   Stiles leaves. It's not like he wanted to, ever, but he had to. Sure, there were choices, always. It's just that, sometimes, all the choices were bad ones.

fucking fantastic. stiles resembles a gaiman-esque saint or a god or something, on a dubiously moral killing spree for half the story. the writing is magical and gripping, and the story moves fast: gritty and bloody and unapologetic. unique and lovely.

Didn’t See That Coming by knittersrevolt E, 84k.

Stiles leaves Beacon Hills in the dust after he catches his husband cheating on him.  //  He finds his way to New York where he starts working for the Hale House Nursery, accidentally adopts a werewolf baby (through no fault of his own thank-you-very-much), and somehow starts training to be an Exorcist Emissary. So, in general, life was going good.  //  Then he hears that demons have found their way into his hometown. Can he face his inner demons and go back to save the day?

I love this story so much, it’s such a fast and engaging ride.  Plus, accidental baby acquisition, who doesn’t love that?  The one where Scott's a cheating jerk so Stiles basically runs away to upstate New York and gets a job at Hale's Nursery Preschool with Laura, and after a few months finds a woman giving birth in an alley, takes her to the hospital, and comes home with her baby when she dies.  Her werewolf baby (not that Stiles has any idea about that).  So now Stiles is the proud single parent of baby Sam.  He eventually moves in with Derek (because a hotel is no place for a newborn and Derek has an extra room).  Things develop over the next few months, and then the Alpha Pack shows up and Peter starts acting suspiciously.  Meanwhile, Stiles is getting magic lessons from Mee-Mee, who is a Demon Puller in addition to being the local supernatural pediatrician and druid.

They discover that a demon escaped the Alpha Pack and went to Beacon Hills -- along with Peter and the twins he kidnapped -- so Derek and Stiles have to pack up and follow it, right on the heels of his dad and Scott, who hired a private detective to find him.  Beacon Hills is interesting, Stiles starts up a body shop selling (magical) creams and ointments and navigates the social waters of a town who seemed not to care that he was cheated on.

Stand Fast in Your Enchantments by DevilDoll, Rahciach   E.  77k.  Complete.   "Stiles knew damn well what a pissed-off wolf sounded like, and every hair on the back of his neck was telling him that somewhere in this room was a very pissed-off werewolf." //  An AU in which Derek is feral, Stiles is magical, and they eat a lot of fast food.

Love this one so much!

[tweenw]

The Godfather-(Derek Hale)

Characters: Stiles Stilinski, Lydia Martin, Scott McCall, Derek Hale and (Y/N)

Pairing: Derek Hale x Reader

Word Count: 1950

Warnings: swearing

Summary: (Y/N) and Derek meet again after 6 years of being apart

Masters of None, watched. RuPauls Drag Race, watched. Orange is the New Black, watched. As I scroll through the suggested Tv Shows on Netflix, I realise that I’ve probably watched them all already. That is the sad reality of my life since I’ve come back to Beacon Hills, only to find out everything has gone awol and I cannot help. My cousin Scott and Stiles are still busy running around trying to save the town from mythical creatures, Lydia is always locked in her house due to her paranoia since Eichen, and Derek hasn’t bothered to get in touch. I guess I could get over my three friends not really having time for me, but not Derek. No, because unlike the other three, Derek has been my one love for the past six years. And during those six years, we haven’t spoken once. But we were both busy. Him with staying alive and me with University. But now that I’m back, I’m not going to let him get away with getting off the grid. No. Now that I’m older, I’m not going to let him get away for a second time. 

“You’re nuts. You’ve officially gone insane. I knew this would happen one day, I just didn’t think it would be so soon.” Stiles throws his hands up in the air and begins to shake his head, but not before looking at me like I’ve lost my mind. 

Stiles and Scott have been best friends since anybody can remember. Which ultimately lead to me and Stiles also becoming best friends, which means that we share every possible secret with each other. Like that one time he told me he spied in on the girls changing rooms just to see Lydia, but ended up seeing Scott’s girlfriend Allison instead. So it shouldn’t be surprising that I tell him secrets too. Like the one about my massive crush on the local sourwolf, Derek Hale. 

“Oh calm down, someone might hear you.” I hiss at Stiles as I grab him by his arms and sit him back down at our lunch table before he has the chance to attract unnecessary attention. That would be the last thing I’d need right now.

“I’m sorry but you just told me you’re in love with Derek fucking Hale. Do you expect me to be all ‘aww that is so adorable’? Nope. This is major. How well do you even know the guy? Hell, does anybody even know the guy?” Stiles deadpans me, but his eyes are playful. 

I groan a little. Maybe telling Stiles wasn’t the best of ideas. But I just need some help on how to repress my crush and get on without Derek in my life, and who else to ask than the boy constantly getting rejected by his crush?

Stiles sighs and looks at me with a little pity. At least his crush is his age, and not like six years older than him, and is into people her own age. God I wish I were older. But what’s a few years anyways? It’s not that big of a deal.

“How does a 5 year plan sound?” Stiles grins before whipping out some pen and paper from his backpack. 

I groan a little at how good the freshly prepared cappuccino tastes. The coffee shop is relatively empty, with just two other people minding their own business and one careless barista who’s probably counting  down the minutes until he can close up. Which means I can sit in peace and quiet and enjoy my book.

I take out my worn copy of The Godfather and dig into it, reality around me seizing to exist for a few hours.

“A car came screeching up the block and to a halt in front of the candy store. It stopped so abruptly that the tires screamed and before it stopped, almost, a man came hurtling out of the drivers seat, moving so fast that everybody was paralysed. That man was Sonny Corleone.”

I smirk a little, already knowing what’s going to come next. This is, after all, my favourite part. 

“Six years later and you’re still reading that book.” A familiar voice, laced with surprise and happiness interrupts me. Startled, I glance up from my book and straight into the deep blue eyes of a man I never thought I’d get to see again. 

It takes my brain a few seconds to process what’s happening, and when it finally catches up with reality a huge smile breaks out across my face. 

I let go of the book and jump from my seat to pull the sourwolf into a bear hug. 

His arms wrap around my waist and hold me like his life depends on it, which sends my heart off into a frenzy. The last time me and him were like this we were saying goodbye. 

“Promise you’ll visit me?” I ask as I reluctantly let go of Derek. The beautiful man isn’t his usual careless and devoid of emotion self. No, he looks like he’s almost sad. 

“I don’t know if I can promise that, but we’ll keep in touch. Now go and join some sorority and enjoy yourself.” He smiles at me, that very rare full-teeth smile that I've grown to love. 

I pull him in for our last hug. I have to bite my lip to stop myself from crying. I really will miss him. 

I’m speechless as I look over the man now sitting down in the chair opposite me. He’s definitely changed since the last time I seen him. His clean-shaved face is now covered with a thick beard, his hair is grown out and not as styled as it used to be, he isn’t sporting a black shirt and leather jacket anymore. He’s dressed casually yet sporty given his nature. But his eyes have changed the most. They’re aged, like fine whiskey, tainted with the horrors he’s lived through, but yet they still hold that undeniable softness. He’s perfect. I love him.

“Take a seat, we haven’t spoken in a long time. How was uni?” He asks, his voice sending a shiver up my spine. It takes everything in me to not jump all over him right then and there. But I sit back down, take a few steadying breaths and let the smile appear. 

“It was alright, I can officially work as a psychologist. How has Beacon Hills been? I can’t deny missing this place and it’s people like crazy.” I sip my coffee and bask in the presence of my childhood crush, my one love. My soulmate. 

“Same old, I bet Scott and Stiles kept you updated. Though you’ve changed a lot, you’re still reading the same books I see.” Derek grins and takes a drink of his coffee, five bucks that it’s cappuccino. His favourite. 

“What can I say, I really haven’t changed much. Can you still quote the book like the back of your hand?” I grin at him. I’ve imagined this moment countless times, over and over, different scenarios and all. But this one never crossed my mind.

Derek clears his throat a little, purposefully dramatic. “She emptied her mind of all thoughts of herself, of her children, of all anger, of all rebellion, of all questions. Then with a profound and deeply willed desire to believe, to be heard, as she had done every day since the murder or Carlo Rizzi, she said the necessary prayers for the soul of Michael Corleone.”

A feeling of deep admiration and affection washes over me, so strong it almost leaves me breathless. I forgot how much in love with this man I once was. Hoe much I still love him with every piece of me.

“Is Sonny still your favourite?”  Derek asks, a slight teasing tone in his voice. 

I snort a little and retaliate. “Are you still a mythical creature?”

He mumbles a touche before looking back at me. “It’s seriously great to see you (Y/N). I’ve missed you.” 

A thought crosses my mind. This is a total 180 turn from the Derek I last seen. He would do anything in his power so the two of us wouldn’t be alone. He would be guarded and never speak to me for a prolonged amount of time. Now that I look back at it, maybe he was aware of my feelings towards him. And maybe he didn’t reciprocate them due to the illegal age gap.

“I’ve missed you too Der. More than I can even explain.” I reach across the table and grab a hold of his hand. He intertwines our fingers and a cage of butterflies erupts in my stomach. My heart quickens, and I kick myself for being so careless around a werewolf. 

Derek chuckles a little and brushes his thumb over my knuckles, as if trying to evoke another similar reaction from me, which he manages quite successfully. 

“I see not much has changed after all. Still got your 5 year plan?” He smirks, not really teasing just bringing up old memories. 

I feel a blush creep up my neck as I realise that he’s known all these years. And all theses years, nothing from my 5 year plan has happened. No cinema trip, no pumpkin carving for Halloween, no kiss under the mistletoe for Christmas. Then again, he always thought I was too young. I didn’t.

“First of all, it was Stiles’s idea. And secondly, it was pointless by the looks of it.” I laugh a little, but something inside of me shuts off. The man in front of me had been my love since I first laid eyes on him picking up Erica Reyes from school. He’s been the one picking me up from the ground when Allison died, when I felt like disappearing because I thought nobody cared, when Scott almost died. And it hurts that I haven’t spent the last six years with him. It hurts that I couldn’t fall asleep with my head on his chest, listening to his heart beat. It hurts that I haven’t felt his lips on mine, not heard him moan my name. It hurts.

Derek tightens his grip on my hand. “It wasn’t all for nothing. We’re both here now, older and probably not much more mature, but it has to count for something. You and me here, together.” He absentmindedly traces circles on my knuckles as he speaks his mind, finally admitting what I’ve wanted to hear for as long as I can remember.

“I really have missed you Derek. But what’s to come next?” I question the god-send in front of me. 

Indeed, what could life be like if Derek and I would end up together? His life is hectic, with death looming at every bend and corner, whilst mines is bland and boring. Would we be good together? Would we get along? Who’d be the bottom? Would he let me adopt a dog? But who am I kidding. Derek and I would be perfectly imperfect.

“Dinner at mines tomorrow night? I’ll cook some pasta, your favourite.” Derek smiles fondly, as if he were finally content with his life. I can’t deny that I am. I am truly happy and not miserable. 

I bite my lip in contemplation, faking having to think about it.

“Well, I guess I could free my incredibly busy schedule for you.” I grin.

The smile that lights up Derek’s face sets off another cage or rampant butterflies, yet this time I don’t bother scolding myself. He knows how I feel, I know how he feels. And though my 5 year plan hasn’t really gone as I planned it to, I still got my desired happy ending. Derek and I in a cafe, in our own little loved-up bubble, discussing our separate past and shared future.